Water resources management in a reservoir-regulated basin: Implications of reservoir network layout on streamflow and hydrologic alteration

•The hydrologic impact of existing and alternative reservoir network layouts was investigated.•Few large reservoirs regulate the streamflow more significantly than many small ones with similar inflow.•Locating reservoirs somewhere with similar inflow is unlikely to change the streamflow condition.•Assigning reservoirs higher inflow without changing their location can increase their functionality.